My Tenor Boy
by camlahey1344
Summary: Mikayla "Kay" Sage is a sophomore in the SHS Marching Band and the flute section leader. She and her best friends, Ben (the tenor/drum captain) and Ashlyn (the "reed master"), go through their 10th grade year rocking their show: Star Wars. Something Mikayla and Ben have been wanting to do for a while. Along the way, she opens up her feelings for Ben. But, does he feel the same?
1. Chapter 1

Being in marching band isn't just rainbows and butterflies. It's a lot of sweat, tears, a bit of blood (if you happen to fall while back marching or crush your finger in a case), and a whole lot of work. My name is Mikayla Beth Sage and I'm a part of the Sullivan High School Marching Band. This is my story.

Sullivan High School is a small little school in Sullivan, North Carolina. When I say small, I mean small. Like, so small the elementary, middle and high school are all together small. But, it's a school where you know everyone, and are usually friends with them. The football team is what everyone talks about on campus: how they've won another game, participated in some kickoff challenge for little kids, and more. But, the most underrated team at SHS is easily the band.

At SHS, you start beginner band in 5th grade. Sounds a bit early, yes, but as Mr. Donivon (or simply Mr. D, as we all call him) says, "it's never too early to start playing an instrument." Anyway, you go through 5th and 6th grade in beginner and intermediate band, and then, ding ding ding! Come 7th grade, you're a marching rookie.

I started in 5th, as we all do. Mr. D tells everyone how to blow the instrument, then has us do it (with percussion, he gives us a rhythm and we must follow), and rates us 1 to 5 with five being the best on how well we can. I wasn't good with the reed instruments from the get-go, scoring a 2 on clarinet and 1 on saxophone. Brass instruments weren't my strongpoint, either, earning me a 2. Mr. D said that there was no need for me to try any other brass, because they're all played basically the same way. I did, however, excel at the flute, making a 4. Percussion was also a strongpoint of mine, also scoring me a 4. In the end, I decided on flute, because 1) my parents didn't want me banging on everything in the house and 2) my best friend got percussion as well, and we wanted to be different from each other. At first, I was the worst possible flute player ever. But, as we progressed, I got way better, even becoming the best in our grade. But, then 7th grade hit, and the real challenge surfaced: Marching band.

Now, before I go on, I'm going to tell you a little about me. As I said, my name is Mikayla Beth Sage, but you can call me Kay. I'm 15, with dark (dyed) red hair. I'm 5'4, and a sophomore at SHS. I live for music; mainly Blessthefall, My Chemical Romance, and Fall Out Boy. But, I love a ton of other music. I also live for playing music. Currently, I can play flute (section leader in band!), guitar, piano, and drums, and I'm learning bass. I have two really close best friends; first, there's Ashlyn Call. She's tall, blonde, and a heck of a reed player. She prefers her bass clarinet, but she can play the regular clarinet, tenor sax, alto sax, and bari. Mr. D calls her "the reed master." We met in 5th grade at band tryouts, and have been best friends ever since. My other best friend is Ben Walker. Ben and I have been friends for as long as we can remember because our parents are close friends. He's easily my all time best friend. We tell each other everything. He's the best friend I mentioned earlier, and as I said, he picked percussion. It was a good decision, too, because now he's drum captain and our only tenor player. He even outshined a few seniors! He's the one who taught me drums as well. He's 6'1, which is extremely tall for me, and he never lets me live it down. I may have a slight crush on him… What am I saying? I've liked him since around 6th grade. But, I'll live with my little crush bottled up inside because there's no way he likes me.

Anyway, now that you know a little more about my friends and me I'll go on with the story. Marching band came in 7th grade. From the start, I was a little awkward, but isn't everyone their first year? I had a lot to learn, but I caught on quickly. Our first ever show was Les Miserables, and it was tough, to say the very least. I worked harder than I ever had at anything. In the end, we ended up placing 5th at State Championships, which Mr. D said was great because of our show's difficulty. From 7th grade to now, we all improved immensely. My rookie year, I couldn't even hit a third octave D. But, now, I'm section leader and playing each scale 3 octaves. As the old saying goes, practice does make perfect.

Flash to present day, and it's the day before band camp for our 10th grade year. Our show this year is Star Wars, a show I've been wanting to do for ages now. I packed my bag full of all my neccessities—water, flute, flip folder, and ponytail holders—and went to bed. I could only dream of what tomorrow would hold.


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as my head hit the pillow, the alarm seemed to ring out.

I groaned and rolled over, shutting it off. It was only 6:30, and camp doesn't start till 8, but you can't be late for the first day of band camp. Mr. D has a rule in band: If you're early, you're on time. You're on time, you're late. You're late, you're dead. It was law—always has been, always will.

Anyway, I sat up and threw my legs over the bed, willing myself forward. I've never been a morning person. Ugh. I walked to the kitchen where Doc, my old German shepherd, dozed underneath the table. Doc had been the subject of many of Ben and I's adventures. He's old—around 12—but still knows how to get around. He had run off many times, and being in the southern region of NC, we have a ton of woods and creeks running through our backyards. Doc would take off through the tangle of woods and Ben and I, being like 8, would take off after him, getting caught in all the tree branches and briars and who-knows-what-else. But, I can't deny that all the times we spent chasing after Doc were some of the best times we spent together.

I started making some coffee and gave Doc his food, going to the bathroom to get ready. I pulled out a pair of blue gym shorts and my red Fall Out Boy shirt. Band camp is conflicting for me because all my band shirts are black, and with 97° heat, black isn't an option. But, I've managed to get by. Anyway, I put my hair up in a bun (its best when your hair isn't hanging down in your face), put on my Cookie Monster hat that Ben and I bought—his Elmo—for the very reason of band camp, and checked my coffee. I poured a cup and added my milk & sugar. Then, I got a bowl and made some Fruit Loops. I usually skip breakfast, but, as with everything else, you can't do that with band camp.

After I drank my coffee and ate my cereal, I checked the time. It was 7:10. Putting on my pair of old tennis shoes, I grabbed my bag, phone and keys, heading out the door. I got my license a year early because whenever my mom had a car accident, she was left with her leg broken, and incapable of driving. She's fine now, though, and I got to keep my license. I had to pick up Ben because his parents were at work (they worked night shifts until 9 am) and he lived on the way anyway.

"Ready for band camp, Benny Boy?" I smiled as he got into my old blue truck.

"Don't call me that," he interjected, and then smiled. "I'm ready. I miss everybody."

His hair was a pretty brown color and long in the front, but short in the back, kind of like one of those guys whom we call sceenie weenies. He had on his Elmo hat over it with his maroon Crimson Tide shirt and grey gym shorts.

That's another thing Ben and I have in common—our love of Alabama Crimson Tide football. I was at his house every game, cheering on Roll Tide. My mom doesn't get why I'm a girl, yet a huge football fanatic, but Ben said it was cool, as did his parents, so I'm alright.

We pulled into the school parking lot and I instantly spotted Ashlyn getting out of her dad's car. "Ash!" I called smiling. She spotted us and said bye to her dad, then rushed over to us, hugging me and then Ben. "Hey you guys!"

"You ready for today?" I asked her.

She nodded. "Mr. D said I could march bass clarinet instead of barry this year!"

I knew she was excited. Mr. D would usually tell her to march barry sax because "you can't hear the bass clarinet well." But, this year, I guess he changed his mind.

"He said I could as long as you play piccolo." She said, and then looked at me hopefully. I sighed. Mr. D was determined to make me march with that piccolo for two years. I hated piccolo. It took a ton of air, and we usually only used one, so if I dropped out, it was noticeable. But still… Ash had wanted to march bass clarinet for a while now. I couldn't let her down.

I sighed. "I'll do it."

She hugged me and said, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"I'm marching tenors this year," Ben threw in. We looked at him. "Ben, you march tenors every year."

He shrugged. "You guys were marching different things… I wanted to pretend like I was."

I laughed and hugged him. "Aw, it's okay, Benny boy. You're the best drummer we have."

He smiled that perfect smile of his and said, "And you'll be the best piccolo player ever."


End file.
